Santorum’s Days Numbered: Race is Now Between Romney and Obama
Mitt Romney has long been assumed the de facto Republican nominee to face incumbent president Obama in the upcoming 2012 elections. He’s leading in media coverage heading into Tuesday’s primary in Wisconsin, which seems to suggest two things: one, his status as “presumptive nominee” is for real, with both his leads in the polls and his high-level endorsements gained this past week, and two, Santorum’s days are numbered.
Here’s a quick round-up on the media-buzz surrounding Mitt Romney.
According to the Christian Science Monitor, “The Republican presidential contest seems to have come down to a two-man race, and we’re not talking about Mitt Romney and Rick Santorum,”. The story puts the race squarely between Romney and Obama at this point, and Romney shows it with a shift in his speeches from the primary all the way to November’s election.
The New York Times says that Romney is near his tipping-point, suggesting that a win Tuesday “would effectively close out the first phase of the primary season.” Meanwhile, Romney’s camp is stealthily putting “well-seasoned advisers” into place for the general election and giving an adrenaline shot to state operations all across the nation. It is also soon to begin fundraising for the upcoming showdown with Obama.
The Washington Post dedicates much of its online coverage today to picking potential VP running-mates for Romney. The story considers Ohio Sen. Rob Portman as a possibility, along with media-familiar Marco Rubio, Paul Ryan, Chris Christie, Susana Martinez, Nikki Haley, Bob McDonnell, and others.
Lastly, Bill Kristol of the Weekly Standard is slightly more pensive to name Romney as the nominee, though does seem pretty convinced, advising Mitt to “lift his general election campaign above the level of the primary contest.” He can’t just criticize Obama: that won’t be enough. Romney has to show the American people why he’s the right choice. “We trust, for the sake of the country, that he’ll be tough and determined and self-critical enough to do the job.”
So though it hasn’t been officially called just yet, the media is prepping for a Romney ticket now, putting him up as the candidate to face Obama in the 2012 elections. Sorry, Santorum. Better luck next time.
